Tech Softball looks to improve in OVC standings with weekend series at UT Martin
MARTIN, Tenn. – As the weekend opens, the Tennessee Tech softball team finds itself with ground to make up in the Ohio Valley Conference standings as the Golden Eagles take on the first of its final four conference opponents of the season with a trip to UT Martin this weekend. In a slightly different schedule than most weeks, the Golden Eagles (12-26, 4-11 OVC) will see the single game on Saturday, starting at 2:30 p.m. The series will conclude on Sunday with a doubleheader starting at 12 p.m. All three games will be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
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0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 14 | 1 |
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0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 2 |
Game 1
Game 1
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 |
Game 2
Game 2
| Final (11) | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | R | H | E |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 19 | 1 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 0 |
By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
MARTIN, Tenn. – As the weekend opens, the Tennessee Tech softball team finds itself with ground to make up in the Ohio Valley Conference standings as the Golden Eagles take on the first of its final four conference opponents of the season with a trip to UT Martin this weekend.
In a slightly different schedule than most weeks, the Golden Eagles (12-26, 4-11 OVC) will see the single game on Saturday, starting at 2:30 p.m. The series will conclude on Sunday with a doubleheader starting at 12 p.m. All three games will be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
In the conference standings, the Golden Eagles currently find themselves in ninth place, just a game back from Western Illinois (5-10). The top eight teams advance to next month's conference tournament in Peoria, Ill. UT Martin, meanwhile at 14-20 overall and 6-8 in the conference, are just two-and-a-half games up on the Golden Eagles.
With 12 league games remaining – barring any other weather difficulties the rest of the way – there's still a lot of room to maneuver in the standings with Tech taking on seventh-place UT Martin this week, fourth-place Southeast Missouri next week in Cookeville, sixth-place Lindenwood on the road the following week, then 10th-place Morehead State in Cookeville for the final week of the regular season.
However, the Golden Eagles are still looking for their first road victory in league play this season, swept at second-place SIUE, who stands at 10-4 on the conference slate, and Southern Indiana.
As teams shift into the second half of the conference campaign, it'll be interesting to see where everything starts to shake out with the postseason tournament looming.
The Skyhawks are 6-5 at home at Bettye Giles Softball Field this season and are looking for their second straight series win after taking both games played against Morehead State last week. Sunday's contest was canceled for inclement weather, while UTM won 11-2 in five innings and 9-5 in the finale during Monday's doubleheader.
UT Martin is coming off a run-ruled midweek contest at No. 19 Ole Miss as the Rebels won 12-0 down in Oxford. The Skyhawks have won at least one game in each conference series they've played thus far.
As a team, UTM is batting .255, collecting 137 runs scored and 116 RBI, while posting 57 extra-base hits – including 31 doubles, nine triples and 17 home runs. The Skyhawks have also stolen 75 bases on 87 attempts. Alli Robinson has been providing a lot of pop in the lineup, leading the team with a .337 average with six home runs, eight doubles and 30 RBI – all team highs. Kyla Harley (.276) has 20 stolen bases and 19 runs scored, while Kennedy Brown (.275) has 20 runs scored and 14 swipes.
The Skyhawks also have a cumulative 4.50 ERA, walking 101 and striking out 135 with opponents hitting .298. Ashtyn Green has seen the most action, collecting a 7-6 record and a 2.83 ERA in 74 1/3 innings of work, walking 16 and striking out 30. Natalie Kreuziger has a 4-4 record with a 4.57 ERA in 53 2/3 innings, walking 28 and striking out 54.
Tech has been swept in three of its last four conference series, blanked at SIUE and Southern Indiana and a tough set last week at home against Eastern Illinois. The fourth was a Tech sweep over Western Illinois. The only series that wasn't a sweep one way or the other was the conference-opening affair against Tennessee State with the Golden Eagles winning the middle game of the set.
As a team, Tech is hitting .262, racking up 146 runs scored and 122 RBI with 57 extra-base hits – including 47 doubles (led by Sydney Kirby's 13), five triples and five home runs (both paced by two from Abbee Klinefelter).
Abby Shoulders leads the team in batting average (.340), runs scored (25), hits (36), on-base percentage (.419) and stolen bases (22). Kirby (.292) leads the team with 21 RBI, while Klinefelter (.313) has 20. Makayli Harris (.307) also has 16 RBI.
In the circle, the Golden Eagles have a 3.91 cumulative ERA, walking 132 and striking out 160 with opponents hitting .305 against. Emily York has seen the most action, collecting a 6-6 record and a 3.22 ERA in 82 2/3 innings with 22 walks and 51 strikeouts. Lainey Fitzgerald (3-7, 5.09 ERA) has 41 walks and 57 strikeouts, while Peyton Wagner (1-9, 3.10 ERA) has 30 walks and 18 strikeouts.
The Golden Eagles return home next weekend for their Easter series against Southeast Missouri with a doubleheader on Friday and single game next Saturday.
Photo | Jim Dillon
